Countdown begins, again: ICD-10 one year away

Providers are once again on the clock as today marks the official one-year countdown for widespread implementation of the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) code set.

"The time to prepare is now."

Originally scheduled for Oct. 1, 2014, the ICD-10 implementation deadline was delayed to Oct. 1, 2015, earlier this spring when Congress also approved a temporary fix to Medicare's physician payment formula as part of the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014.

Although the delay provided ODs some breathing room to continue preparations, it's imperative that doctors put ICD-10 back at the top of their priorities, says Rebecca Wartman, O.D., AOA Third Party Center Executive Committee member.

"ICD-10-CM is not as different as many think, but there is enough change to need to dig in and understand how to find codes and use this new code set," Dr. Wartman says.

"The time to prepare is now. Get comfortable: Practice coding different encounters from your current patient encounters—particularly the encounters with unusual findings—begin to review the diagnoses on your current billing forms, and remember your EHRs cannot do everything for you. Use the many resources available on the AOA website."

Member resources available for ICD-10 compliance Time is ticking away, so take advantage of this time to step up the preparation regimen and review AOA resources that will help ensure your practice makes the transition to ICD-10.

These three products are approved and recommended by AOA's coding experts, and member-only pricing means you will save more than $50 off the bundle, as well. Click here to place your pre-order so you can hit the ground running.

Members also can find these other ICD-10 resources to help prepare for the transition:

Ask the Coding Experts ICD-10 webinar series available at AOA EyeLearn